Century of the Common Iowan Turns 3 Years Old

I glanced at the clock and saw there was just 5 minutes till midnight. I had forgotten that Monday marked the 3rd birthday for Century of the Common Iowan and I only had 5 minutes to put up a post to sum up those 3 years. Yeah right.

Well here's what I got written in an hour...

As I look back, it is interesting how the focus of the blog has evolved over those years. In the blogs first year I wrote a lot about issues such as the rising cost of college tuition and Iowa's Brain Drain, immigration, and the need for a trade policy that protects American jobs. Year two was all about the Iowa caucuses. The following year I was able to sit back and watch the primaries play out and lead up to the general election. With the 2008 elections behind us, I have been able to write more about policies and topics such as the emergence of Millennials, social media, education, and the need to invest in a creative economy.

3 years, 2,226 posts, and over 132,000 visitors later and here we are in the best of times, in the worst of times. Our current economic and political situation find us in a situation where remarkable change can take place (and if it doesn't, it's because we didn't make them do it) . It is time for big ideas. In the coming year I hope to focus on the big ideas that desmoinesdem laid out that I wrote about last month.

• Clean elections
• Promoting clean energy solutions
• Local control of hog confinements
• Passenger rail
  
• Rural broadband.

These are not new issues. Many I have written about since I started this blog, but now is the time to stop talking about these issues and start seeing real action. On the campaign trail, Barack Obama told the story that one voice can change a room, one room can change a city, one city can change a nation. It is my hope that over the past 3 years, I have been able to change 1 person's viewpoint on these key issues and encouraged 1 person to take action on these key issues.

I'd like to end by repeating what Rekha Basu wrote about activism that I posted about earlier today..

Still, it takes courage to be an activist. It requires putting yourself out there in public, daring to take the unpopular position and getting hostile feedback... But those who understand history know well the role activism has played in winning rights and making a more just, humane and accessible America.

Join in. Post comments. Attend your local Democratic central committee meeting. Call your State Legislators. Get active in a community group or city board. Start your own blog. Heck, run for local office.

It's time to make a ruckus. Let's go!

It Was All Worth It

After watching Barack Obama's speech last night I realized that it truly was worth it. It was worth the all the miles I drove to hear all the candidates speak, all the time I volunteered, all the phone calls I made, and all the doors I knocked days before the Iowa caucuses in below zero weather.

Inauguration day was about the show, the monuments, the weight of the presidency, and the historical moment in our nation.

Election day was about the people, the volunteers, and the excitement.

The night of the Iowa Caucuses was about the beginning of a movement.

Last night, though, it all came together. Barack Obama called all Americans to the table to act. He spoke, not as a member of a political party, but as our President. President Obama was no longer making promises on a campaign trail, but instead laying a vision for our country, a path back to prosperity.

Inaugural Frenzy

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

I went through the archives and am posting links to some of Obama's greatest speeches, my best posts, and reports from events that I attended throughout the campaign.

Do Your Part

This election was not about Obama at all. It was about you and me. It was about reponsibility, opportunity, and community. We all have the responsibility to get active in something we believe in, we have the opportunity to solve big problems, and we must come together in our own communities to make it happen.

Obama's Victory Speech

It's Not About Politics, It's About Hope
Story about a lifelong Republican who volunteered to canvass a housing project for the Obama campaign.

Got Hope?
Best ad from MoveOn's ad contest.

Yes We Can
Will.i.am's remix of Obama's speech on the night of the New Hampshire primary.

Obama's South Carolina Victory Speech

Barack Obama: Yes, We Can

Reports from campaign events I attended leading up to the Iowa Caucuses...

Michelle Obama: We Suffer a Deficit of Empathy
Probably the best speech I heard from anyone leading up to the caucuses.

Obama Highlights Real World Experience and Action
Video from an event in Marshalltown.

Obama Saves Christmas
Obama campaign helps local family.

Video from Oprah and Obama in Des Moines

Heartland Presidential Forum: Barack Obama

Video of Obama's speech at the Jefferson Jackson Dinner
Probably the speech that seperated himself from the pack and showed the Democratic base that Obama was for real.

Obama Liveblog in Oskaloosa: The Speech

Obama in Newton

Report from Obama Event in Marshalltown: Part 1

Report From Obama Event in Marshalltown: Part 2

Here are the liveblog from Obama's rally in Ames following his presidential announcement...
Live Blogging from Obama Event in Ames: Part 1

Live Blogging from Obama Event in Ames: Part 2

1 Year After Winning Iowa Caucuses, the Obama's Head to D.C.

Today, Barack Obama's family moves to Washington D.C.

One year ago Barack Obama path to the White House began by winning the Iowa Caucuses. Thanks to a record number of Democrats turning out to participate in what can only be called pure democracy, Obama defeated the Clinton machine and the Edwards organization.

This was my first experience with the Iowa Caucuses and, though the caucuses has some faults, was amazed at the entire process. To go along with desmoinesdems post at Bleeding Heartland, here's my report from my precinct. This comment to that post sums up Obama's victory and explains how Obama defeated Clinton...

I think the whole story of what happened in the caucuses is encapsulated right there. Out of 66 people who were not supporting viable candidates,, 22 went Edwards, 19 went Obama and 4 for Clinton and that, for whatever reason, Hillary lost the caucuses during the realignment period.

Oh the Irony: If McCain had Campaigned in Iowa during the Caucuses

From the Democratic Strategist...

Now, more than two weeks later, with the McCain campaign having told reporters that Iowa is already lost, and with its efforts now being focused on PA, VA, NC, IN, FL, and maybe NH, guess what? Both John McCain and Sarah Palin are going to spend time in Iowa this weekend.

The only thing that's changed in the last couple of weeks is that the one polling outfit that failed to show Obama ahead in Iowa at any point during the entire year--the Big Ten Battleground consortium--now shows Obama up by 13 points. The RealClearPolitics average of Iowa polls for the last month has Obama up by 12.5 points, and comfortably over 50%.

The irony is that if McCain had shown anything like this sort of stubborn interest in Iowa during the Caucus seasons of 2000 and 2008, he might well be in a position to win the state.

John Nichols Calls on Iowans to Continue to Lead

Last weekend I attended the Iowa CCI convention where John Nichols was the keynote speaker. Nichols gave a great speech that made all of the Iowans in attendance proud.

His theme was that citizenship requires action, that it is more than just voting a couple times each year. It is Iowan's responsibility to pursue progressive goals that move the nation forward because Iowans has always been on the frontline of progressive change in the country.

Nichols outlined how Iowa has been leading the nation on the big issues ever since it became a state in 1846 and declared that it was not going to be a slave state. Wisconsin and Minnesota followed suit and this was the beginning of the end of slavery.

He then told the story of Smith Wildman Brookhart (Yes, Wildman was really his middle name.), who ran ran for the United States Senate in 1922 as a Republican with a populist message, saying...

Wall St. is a greater threat to America than any foreign enemy.

Brookhart won a close election and was seated in the Senate until he pissed off party leaders and the election was overturned. He is the only person ever to have the election results overturned after already being seated as a US Senator. Broookhart didn't give up though. He ran in 1926 against longtime Senator Albert B. Cummins, who was the chair of the Judiciary committee. Brookhart went on to beat Cummins in the Republican primary and went on to win in the general election.

Nichols then talked about Henry Wallace and I shot this video of him talking about Henry Wallace. I used my cell phone to take the video, so the quality isn't the best, but here it is anyway.



Nichols quoted George McGovern, who had this to say about Henry Wallace...

The only thing Henry Wallace did wrong was believe that America could be as good as Americans were.

Nichols then told how Harold Hughes spoke to end the war in Vietnam and against the strong-armed tatics being used by the Chicago police.

That led up to the 2008 Iowa caucuses. Nichols said that Iowans did what only Iowans can do. We asked the tough questions at the small town cafes and in the end, showed the rest of the nation Barack Obama could win.

Nichols stressed that our duties don't stop there. We must continue to push ahead on the issues of clean elections, local control of hog confinements, clean water, and worker's rights. If Iowans do that then the rest of the country will follow.

Expect Chaos in 2012 if All of the Mighigan and Florida Delegates are Seated

If the DNC seats all of the Michigan and Florida delegates, expect there to be absolute chaos leading up to the next contested Presidential primary.

From Marc Ambinder...

Lots of folks on both sides of the Obama/Clinton debate predict total chaos in 2012 (if the Democrats lose the election) or 2016. Luckily, 2016 is a ways away, and Democrats are confident about their chances.

But think about it. States will have NO incentive to follow the rules, knowing that at least half their delegations will be seated. The candidates will treat the states like any other state; Remember that Florida, which had half its delegation penalized by the RNC, turned into the victory that essentially sealed the nomination for John McCain.

Nominee-presumptives Obama and Clinton have no incentive to change the calendar -- he needs Iowa and she needs New Hampshire for the general election.

Hey Hillary, which votes count?

Keith Olbermann attempts to explain Hillary Clinton's definition of which votes counts...



Unfortunately, Iowa doesn't count because we are a caucus, a small state, next to Illinois, have educated activists that are liberal, we voted Republican in 2004, and we care about both foreign policy and domestic issues.

1st District Convention Results

I posted my report about Obama gaining a national delegate at the 4th District Convention at Daily Kos and it sparked a lot of discussion. The discussion at Kos was if Obama won a delegate in the 4th District or if he ended up losing a delegate overall.

Coming into the convention, Obama had 15 delegates secured with 3 delegates up for grabs. The national media counted the hens before the eggs hatched and wrongly projected that Obama would pick up 17 delegates.

A person who attended the 1st District convention posted their results in the comments section and it looks like the Edwards group was able to become viable and won a national delegate. If the Edwards group wasn't viable, Obama would have likely won that national delegate.

After check-in, Edwards had 79 delegates but needed 81 to be viable. There were 7 undecideds. If only 2 undecideds went to Edwards, he was going to get a delegate, so the result in the 1st District was not at all unexpected. But the funny (in a sardonic way) thing was that some Clinton delegates went over to Edwards, just to make sure Obama didn't get that extra delegate.

1st alignment (534 delegates at check-in):
Obama - 281 (52.6%)
Clinton - 167 (31.3%)
Edwards - 79 (14.8%)
Undecided - 7 (1.3%)

2nd alignment (out of 533 - someone left early?):
Obama - 283 (53.1%)
Clinton - 156 (29.3%)
Edwards - 94 (17.6%)

National Delegates:
Obama - 3 (2 males, 1 female)
Clinton - 2 (1 male, 1 female)
Edwards - 1 (female)

National Alternate: Obama - 1 (male)

4th District Democratic Convention: Obama Gains A National Delegate

The big news out of the 4th District Democratic Convention was that Barack Obama picked up a national delegate.

The 4th District had 507 seats to fill. At first count 425 of the seats were filled with delegates and the first count was Obama 231, Clinton 147, Edwards 42, Uncommitted 5. The remaining seats were filled with alternates. I was one of the alternates that were seated for Obama.

After the alternates were seated the count was Obama 274, Clinton 175, Edwards 52, Uncommitted 6. The number for viability was 76. The Edwards group (and the uncommitteds) weren't viabile. The national delegate count at this time was Obama 3, Clinton 2, with one delegate up for grabs.

We then broke into preference groups for an hour where both the Clinton and Obama groups could persuade the non-viable groups to come to their side. The Obama group was very well organized, led by Tom Harrington. They had people already selected to go speak to the Edwards group (which had moved to a separate room), while everyone else sat and chatted. I quickly did some math and by figures Clinton could afford to send 6 delegates to Edwards, which wasn't enough to make Edwards viable even with the 6 uncommitted delegates.

The Clinton group let out a couple cheers as they had swayed a few people to come there way right off the bat. After about 45 minutes, the doors opened and a parade of people from the Edwards group marched in and headed to the Obama group. All of the Obama supporters stood and started a "Fired Up! Ready to go!" chant as the parade of former Edwards supporters joined with the Obama group. It was later announced that the Obama group offered the Edwards group a bunch of seats on the platform committee if they came to Obama's side.

The final numbers were announced with Obama having 316, Clinton 187, and 2 people stayed uncommitted. This meant during realignment Obama gained 42 and Clinton gained 12 supporters. The final delegate numbers were then Obama 4, Clinton 2, with the alternate going to Obama. Obama, also, won 6 of the 10 seats to the committees for the State Convention.

As part of the deal to get the majority of Edwards supporters to head to Obama's side, 5 of the 6 seats on the platform committee were from the Edwards group. Edwards supporters were also able to run for national delegate in the Obama group, though none ended up being elected. The Clinton group also went to the Edwards group with an offer, but the majority of the Edwards group favored Obama.

Clinton's Anti-Caucus Statements May Swing Harkin to Obama

In a Des Moines Register interview, Sen. Tom Harkin said that Hillary Clinton's statements criticizing the Iowa caucuses would weigh on his decision of whom to endorse. Harkin also referred to Obama strength among independents.

... the candidates' views on keeping the caucuses in their traditional leadoff position and their performance among independent voters are especially important to him.

Clinton and some of her campaign aides sought to diminish the impact of the caucuses after her close third-place finish in January behind Obama and former Sen. John Edwards.

"Iowa doesn't have the best track record in determining whom the party nominates," Clinton said. She also referred to the contests as having "disenfranchised" voters who could not attend."I was not happy with those statements," Harkin said. "I happen to think there's a great value in caucuses for organizing."

Iowa Caucuses Round 2

Round 2 of the Iowa Caucuses is taking place today around the state with 99 county convention. Dave Redlawsk explains more...

On caucus night it was estimated that Obama’s 38% of the caucus vote would net him 16 delegates, Clinton’s 29% would net her 15, and Edwards would receive 14 from his 30% caucus support. And these numbers are already included in the counts that currently show Clinton and Obama separated by fewer than 100 delegates.

But here’s the rub. Iowa Democrats will not actually elect any national delegates until our Congressional District Conventions on April 26. At that time 29 of the delegates will be elected, with the remaining 16 elected at the State Convention in June. And those delegates will be elected in proportion to the support each candidate receives at those conventions. How will we know how much support they have? That’s where the county conventions come in.

County Convention Delegates elected at the caucus were elected in support of a candidate (or uncommitted). At the county convention, just like at the caucuses, there will be a “re-alignment” period, where delegates can change their allegiance. Once that process is done, we will count the supporters, and any candidate with less than 15% support at the county convention will be declared non-viable, with those delegates needing to move to a different candidate. When the alignment is over, the viable candidate groups will elect their share of district and state convention delegates.

So who cares? This seems like it is just another part of Iowa’s arcane process, and the battle has moved well beyond us. Normally that would be true, but across Iowa some 30% of all county convention delegates are John Edwards supporters (more than Clinton has by a handful), and those folks may have to make a choice. The choice they make may determine whether Clinton or Obama comes out of Iowa with the bulk of our national delegates – either one could conceivably pick up all 14 of Edwards’ potential delegates. Normally that wouldn’t matter much, but this time around every delegate may make a difference.

Check back later, as I will be posting throughout the day from my county convention.

Obama's Winning Because of the Caucuses

Joe Trippi has an interesting take on why Obama is winning...

Obama's overall delegate lead: 117

Obama's delegate advantage in caucuses: 129 delegates

The Clinton campaign's decision to "skip" the caucuses by not matching Obama's investment in local organizing, may be the biggest political strategy blunder since the ignore-the-swiftboat call.

Idaho. Maine. Texas. Nebraska. These are not obvious "Obama states" yet he grabbed big delegate leads in each of these caucuses.

Why? Because Obama's campaign embraced bottom-up campaigning. Because it pumped money into local organizers. Because it gave tools to precinct captains and volunteers.

While Obama also ran television advertising and leveraged endorsers, Clinton's campaign is marked by its top-down messaging and its use of local political machines. Obama perfected bottom-up organizing - and the caucus system rewarded him.

This bottom-up strategy was clearly visible the past two weeks when the campaigns were trying to get their delegates to the county convention that will take place on Saturday. Clinton relied on robocalls, while the Obama campaign set up a website where volunteers could log onto and get a list of people to call.

60,000 Iowans Register as Democrats for Iowa Caucuses

Thanks to record turnout at the Iowa Caucuses in January the Iowa Democratic Party has 60,000 new registrants. The Republicans gained 7,600 new registrants , while 49,000 people are no longer registered as no party.

This makes the current registration totals in Iowa as of March 1^st : Democrats – 701,285; Republicans - 615,576; and 761,201 No Party.

This Democratic Wave should bode well for Democrats in the 2008 elections, as they look to expand majorities in the Iowa Senate and Iowa House, and compete for Congressional seats.

Michigan Considering a January 15th Primary

Just when you thought the nominating calendar couldn't get any wackier, Marc Ambinder reports this...

Michigan could hold a statewide primary on Jan 15, if a deal reached this morning by top Republicans and Democrats in the state passes muster with state legislators.

Michigan political sources say that Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Sen. Carl Levin are very close to a deal with House Speaker Andy Dillon (D) and Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R). It's not clear whether the state parties are on board, yet, but if the legislature decides to pass a bill changing the primary date, and then Gov. Granholm signs it, there's not much dissidents can do.

And what does this do to Iowa? Ambinder writes...

If the political world takes Michigan seriously, Iowa might be forced to look at a December date again (despite Gov. Chet Culver's protestations to the contrary) because New Hampshire's Secretary of State would be pressed to set the state's primary in early January.

I say just set the caucus date in mid December. No other state would jump behind us because of the holidays. New Hampshire could then go in early January and the holidays would prevent states from jumping ahead of them. Candidates would still compete here because they have already invested so much into the state and we keep our relationship in tact with New Hampshire.

**Update**
Chris Bowers at Open Left makes a guess at what the schedule will look like...

• Mid-December-Mid-January: Iowa caucuses
  
• Tuesday, January 8th: New Hampshire
  
• Tuesday, January 15th: Michigan
  
• Saturday, January 19th: Nevada Democratic caucuses, South Carolina Republican primary
  
• Tuesday, January 22nd: Wyoming Republican caucuses
  
• Tuesday, January 29th: Florida primary, South Carolina Democratic primary
  
• Tuesday, February 5th: Super Tuesday

Dave Nagle on Iowa's Role as First in the Nation

Former Rep. Dave Nagle is back blogging at the Des Moines Register. Yesterday, he wrote about Iowa's role as first in the nation.

Critics argue that neither state is representative of the country as a whole. The populations are too white or too rural to really reflect the national will. But whether these reasons or others, every four years it is still Iowa and then New Hampshire.

But interestingly enough, while other states continually challenge the “first in the nation states”, the potential candidates do not and the reason for their not challenging is based upon some pretty sound logic.

Long shot individuals, who in their bedrooms at night hear the nation calling them, know that it doesn’t require the money that front-runners have at their disposal. A level playing field is better than the future leader of the free world being decided by who has the biggest bank account.

Biden Stresses the Importance of Iowa and New Hampshire Being First

Speaking before a small crowd of about 25 people in a Marshalltown coffeshop, Joe Biden stressed the importance of Iowa keeping it’s first in the nation status.

If it weren’t for you people in Iowa, guys like me wouldn’t be able to compete and get their ideas out there. Without Iowa and New Hampshire first, it is all about money.

Biden discussed what it would be like if larger states like California, Florida, New York, and Ohio would be go early in the nominating process.

Biden then went and asked if we ever thought candidates would be sitting in a small coffeeshop in California talking to people.

Biden is exactly right. If we want to see the presidential campaigns played out on TV through ads and soundbites on cable news then it doesn't matter if Iowa and New Hampshire goes first. However, lesser known candidates without as much money are able to compete in Iowa and New Hampshire. These states give these candidates a smaller stage to compete on and forces the big name rock star candidates to participate in retail politics.

Video from the Hall of Fame Dinner

I didn't attend the Iowa Democratic Party's Hall of Fame dinner last night because I had a wedding to go to. However, I did catch some of the event last night on CSPAN when I got home.

I was really impressed with John Edwards' speech. Last week, I wrote that Edwards needed to call on the American people to take action to fix the problems we face. Edwards made this a key part of his speech.

This morning I was happy to see that John Deeth posted a live blog of the event and to see Chris Dodd and John Edwards had posted video of their speeches.

Chris Dodd


John Edwards

Latest Des Moines Register Iowa Poll: A Look at the Republicans

Yesterday, I took a look at the latest poll in Iowa from Des Moines Register on the Democratic side. Today, it is the Republicans turn.

After looking at the poll numbers, there are 3 surprises. First, is Mitt Romney's jump in the polls to 1st place with 30%. Romney has failed to get above 20% in any other polls.

The second surprise was brought to my attention by Chris at MyDD. It seems that McCain and Rudy are stuck around 17-18% in the polls. Some of these polls have Gingrich and Fred Thompson, or just one of those, or neither of them and McCain and Rudy still get about 17-18%.

The differing results for Romney seem to be entirely based on the varying options presented to the apparently large Anyone But McCain and Giuliani vote among Iowa Republicans. Without Gingrich and F. Thompson, and thus fewer options to split that vote, Romney pulls in an impressive 30%.

As for the second tier candidates, Tommy Thompson, Mike Huckabee, Sam Brownback, and Tom Tancredo all polled between 7% and 4%. Thompson has put the most effort out of that group and he has the slight lead. I fully expect one of these 4 to make a move to the top tier, unless another candidate jumps in the race and steals their thunder. Tancredo might make a jump if their is strong opposition to the Immigration Bill not being strict enough.

Finally, the Register asked what candidates caucus goers would like to see enter the race. Three Republicans received more than 45% on this question, which shows that the Republicans aren't satisfied with their candidates. Condileeza Rice got 50%, Newt Gingrich got 48%, and Fred Thompson got 45%. I don't think these are perfect candidates for Republicans either.

Latest Des Moines Register Iowa Poll: A Look at the Democrats

The Des Moines Register has a new poll out that shows how well candidates are doing in Iowa. John Edwards continues to lead in Iowa, Obama and Clinton are basically tied for 2nd. The big news is Bill Richardson's jump to 10% in the poll. Richardson has been running TV ads for awhile now and they are playing well. I hope this Richardson motivation to make a greater effort in Iowa. The people I talk to are interested in Richardson, but want more information on on him. Chris Dodd is not catching on, which is a shame. He has taken some strong progressive positions, including supporting the Feingold-Reid bill last week. He is getting out polled by Kucinich and Gravel who haven't even campaigned here.

Here are the results...

John Edwards 29%
Barack Obama 23%
Hillary Clinton 21%
Bill Richardson 10%
Joe Biden 3%
Dennis Kucinich 2%
Mike Gravel 1%
Chris Dodd less than 1%
Undecided 11%

The poll also asks who caucus goers would like to see in the race. 44% said they would like to see Al Gore running, 23% want John Kerry to run again, and 20% wish Wesley Clark would enter the race. This is not the amount of support these non-candidates have, just how many people would like them in the race.

The Des Moines Register's polls were fairly accurate in the 2006 Governor's race and I think the poll results are pretty comparable to the feeling that I get on the ground here.